Suggestions! (new)

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testtubegames
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Re: Suggestions! (new)

Post by testtubegames »

wtg62 wrote:Shouldn't mass and size be two different independent variables? ... Will we be able to create a circular orbit for an object around our reference (followed) object?
Curious thought on the mass. I do like the fact that size and mass are linked -- in that it makes the screen really easy to understand (ah, that's the massive one, those little ones are negligible). By you're right, star density, earth density, Jupiter density, they are different. I could maybe add in a) a set of options for density (gas giant, rocky planet, star)... or b) a way to disconnect the size from mass entirely. As a side note, the size doesn't vary realistically now anyway. The radius scales logarithmically (so sizes aren't *so* drastically different).

Option 'a' could be cool, since maybe I'd be able to change the images for the objects depending on what they are. (Stars a bit luminous, rocky planets, well, rocky). Still, I'd hate to lose the easy visualization of the mass... I'm open to other thoughts here.

As for circular orbits around tracked objects: yes! Love it. An easy, easy way to make a moon.
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Re: Suggestions! (new)

Post by A Random Player »

testtubegames wrote: As for circular orbits around tracked objects: yes! Love it. An easy, easy way to make a moon.
Aww, here I was thinking I was so special since I could make a pretty stable system without using the code :P
Example:

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Gravity Fun at TestTubeGames.com: [ForceG: -2,Qual: 1,Zoom: 1,xSet: -326,ySet: -29], [x0: -168,y0: 1,vx: 0,vy: 0,t0: 0,who: 1,m: 1000], [x0: 362,y0: 115,vx: 0.29,vy: -1.33,t0: 0,who: 2,m: 100], [x0: 373,y0: 119,vx: 0.95,vy: -4.1,t0: 0,who: 3,m: 0], [x0: 367,y0: 95,vx: -1.8,vy: -2,t0: 0,who: 3,m: 0]
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wtg62
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Re: Suggestions! (new)

Post by wtg62 »

Ah, so that's why the planets are sized like that.

If you do add size being separate from mass,
You should add a button that toggles rendering size from the mass (The way planets are currently rendered).

I also like the idea of having different types of planet entities that have different images to represent them. I'd definitely love to see that :D
(I also sorta noticed stars and planets are the same thing in the simulator anyhow :P)

Also, yay! Easy moons!
A Random Player wrote: Aww, here I was thinking I was so special since I could make a pretty stable system without using the code :P
2 moons in a nearly circular orbit around a planet... if only I could do that :P
Last edited by wtg62 on Wed Feb 12, 2014 1:44 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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testtubegames
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Re: Suggestions! (new)

Post by testtubegames »

A Random Player wrote:Aww, here I was thinking I was so special since I could make a pretty stable system without using the code :P
Haha! Well, then, I'm sad to announce the tracking feature has been added. I even used it to check out your system from the vantage point of the planet -- those moons had pretty near-circular orbits. Well done!
wtg62 wrote:If you do add size being separate from mass, you should add a button that toggles rendering size from the mass
That's a good suggestion, there *will* be a whole menu of 'visual' options already. (Length of orbital lines, possible velocity dependence, grid lines toggling, that kinda thing) I'll keep pondering this one.
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Re: Suggestions! (new)

Post by A Random Player »

I had an idea for using rotation of planet/asteroids: something like "astronomy" for the "people" of a planet. You could watch how the sun moves each day, or get something like a retrograde motion of a planet. Example:

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XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
X                                   X
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X        B                          X
X                          A        X
X             B                     X
X            O☻J                    X
X             |                     X
X                                   X
X                        C          X
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XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

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X                                   X
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X             B                     X
X                               A   X
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                  O☻J
                   |
The weird object labeled "OBJ" is a planet, A B and C other objects. Setting view to "astronomy" makes the object hidden, just beneath the bottom of the screen. The screen rotates with the planet. You can set where the astronomy mode points (where on the planet the telescope is). Notice how you can't see C because it is (currently) below the horizon.

This can be used to demonstrate tidal locking, for example, where the moon always has a planet in the same place in the sky (astronomy mode moon), and the planet always sees the same side of the moon.
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wtg62
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Re: Suggestions! (new)

Post by wtg62 »

You should really re-size the grid according to zoom.

Although yes, some lines would be less visible, you can make a few more thick.
Like this.

Also, I've noticed those Zoom, XSet, and YSet parameters in the code are unused! Perhaps in a later version you could make it so they are?
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Re: Suggestions! (new)

Post by A Random Player »

wtg62 wrote:You should really re-size the grid according to zoom.

Although yes, some lines would be less visible, you can make a few more thick.
Like this.

Also, I've noticed those Zoom, XSet, and YSet parameters in the code are unused! Perhaps in a later version you could make it so they are?
Agree with the zoom. Maybe have them go in powers of 10, so as you zoom out, the close together ones fade out. Zoom in means the close together ones fade in. (sorta like KSP.)
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Re: Suggestions! (new)

Post by wtg62 »

A Random Player wrote:Agree with the zoom. Maybe have them go in powers of 10, so as you zoom out, the close together ones fade out. Zoom in means the close together ones fade in. (sorta like KSP.)
That'd make a great addition to my suggestion.

Maybe when Andy decides to implement several visual options, he should make it so the spacing between each line is configurable.
(I.e. The squares formed on the grid could be set to be 8.0² GSim units)
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Re: Suggestions! (new)

Post by testtubegames »

A Random Player wrote:I had an idea for using rotation of planet/asteroids: something like "astronomy" for the "people" of a planet. You could watch how the sun moves each day, or get something like a retrograde motion of a planet.
Interesting. If we do add in rotation, I think that'd be a great addition. I'll add it to the list. Still not sure exactly where rotation would come from, though. The option that springs to mind: they all start with zero angular momentum... but through tidal locking/collisions they can tug on each other? Still, assuming you've got collisions turned off (or just set a planet down manually, instead of growing it from a collection of smaller planets), it shouldn't be rotating much. Tidal locking is a fairly small effect. Food for thought, though.
wtg62 wrote:You should really re-size the grid according to zoom.
Agreed! I don't like the way the grid lines go all weird either. Right now it's a big drawing that shrinks or stretches. My plan, though, is to replace it with individual lines that neither shrink nor stretch -- they just move closer to each other or further away. And when they get too close, they disappear. Just like you two are talking about. Should look pretty snazzy (powers of 10 style).
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Re: Suggestions! (new)

Post by robly18 »

testtubegames wrote:Tidal locking is a fairly small effect. Food for thought, though.
Well, considering the scale of this game, I'd say it would be relatively significant. It sounds slightly hard to implement without killing one's computer, but then again, that's what I thought of the tracking thing. Guess I just suck at coding.
Anyway, larger objects get more affected by tidal locking. As such, it sounds like it wouldn't require all that much. I mean, the moon got tidally locked in... What, 4 billion years? Maybe less? But the scales involved are huge. According to wolfram alpha (http://www.wolframalpha.com/input/?i=ra ... +and+earth) the radius of the moon to distance between moon and earth ratio is about 0.0043. The ratio between an asteroid and the distance between it and a planet in this game is usually around, say 0.1. And the distances are much shorter,so that leaves even more room for tidal lock to join in.

My point is, it's not high priority, but give it a shot someday. I think it's more effective than you think.
Last edited by robly18 on Thu Feb 13, 2014 6:45 pm, edited 2 times in total.
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